KORN: Behind clutch secondary, Lee notches huge win vs. EP El Dorado

Published 12:15 pm, Saturday, September 19, 2015

Coming off of a 52-14 thrashing at the hands of Southlake Carroll last week, it was imperative that the Lee defense reset and find an answer against another juggernaut in El Paso El Dorado.

And after a long delay -- two and a half hours to be exact -- thanks to some persistent lightning in the area, the Rebel defense did just that on Friday at Grande Communications Stadium with a 35-16 win against El Dorado.

The Aztecs were averaging a mind-boggling 57.6 points per contest coming into Friday's game. Lee held them to just 16 points and even more impressively, to just 374 yards of total offense. Six of those points came on a 14-yard touchdown pass with four seconds left in the game.

The talented El Dorado quarterback Austyn Hill came out firing to start the game. He played like the gunslinger he was advertised as and the Lee secondary had difficulty containing several capable targets who got open all over the field. Hill completed an array of slant passes and deep balls and he had the Rebel defenders guessing for most of the first half, despite a near non-existent running game.

El Dorado ran 19 plays on its first drive and by the end of the first quarter, had run 27 plays to just three for Lee. Winning the time of possession battle and keeping the Aztecs offense on the sidelines as much as possible was a key to this game for Lee coming in.

Though the Rebel defense struggled at first, it certainly came around.

On consecutive El Dorado possessions in the second quarter, Tristian Martinez and Dedrick Strambler each came up with an interception. Martinez' interception came in the end zone, as it directly prevented an El Dorado score.

And with the help of some penalties, as well as Lee's ability to drive the ball down the field on offense, the Aztecs trailed, 14-3, at half.

Then in the second half, the Rebels' defense and its perpetually strong running game really kicked things into gear.

Ashton Akbar's one-yard touchdown run gave Lee a 21-3 edge with 7:51 left in the third quarter. At that point, the Aztec offense practically became one-dimensional, which allowed Lee's secondary to lock in on the passing game.

The rest of the way, El Dorado's offense wasn't nearly as explosive as it was early on. To start the game, the Aztecs had been able to convert third and long after third and long. But as the game progressed, Lee tightened up and allowed fewer big plays, with the knowledge that the pass was coming.

This was an especially important win for Lee. Although it was a non-district opponent, El Dorado is a team with similar offensive capability to that of the big three District 3-6A teams in Odessa Permian, San Angelo Central and Abilene High.

All three of those teams can move the ball very efficiently and light up scoreboards. The Rebels can now call upon their experience playing against and shutting down a dangerous offense, and that could do them wonders in district play, which begins in two weeks.